friday
thru 5/31: 45 years of pac-man exhibit: the paley center celebrates 45 years of chasing ghosts and chomping dots with a new exhibition filled with arcade cabinets, installations, rare artifacts, and fun facts that trace the history of pac-man in the arcade and pop culture. the paley center for media (midtown), included with regular museum admission ($20 general, $16 seniors/students/teachers/veterans/first responders). >>
thru 1/29: the lord of the rings trilogy 25th anniversary screenings: peter jackson’s trilogy, based on j.r.r. tolkien’s books and starring elijah wood, sean astin, ian mckellen, and viggo mortensen, returns for a limited engagement at select theaters. various prices. >>
thru 1/22: sunset boulevard: get ready for your close-up at film forum. the greenwich village art-house cinema is presenting the u.s. premiere of a new 4k restoration of billy wilder’s sunset boulevard (1950), starring william holden, gloria swanson, and erich von stroheim. film forum (south village), $17. >>
thru mon: commemorating martin luther king, jr. day: honor the life and legacy of martin luther king, jr. with performances at the apollo theater and brooklyn academy of music, volunteering events with the nyc parks department, and more. >>
thru sun: best of the african diaspora international film festival 2025: a curated selection of films from the adiff returns for three days of screenings at teachers college at columbia university (morningside heights). $15 general, $13 seniors/students. >>
thru sun (7:30pm): 11th annual new ear festival: the annual festival of avant-garde music, spoken word, video, and dance returns to fridman gallery (les) for four evenings. $20-30. >>
fri 6pm-midnight: new year new-to-you night out: swap clothes, shop a vintage and secondhand market, drink-and-draw, and more at brooklyn roots collective’s new year new-to-you night out in east williamsburg. free admission with rsvp for a limited time, separate tickets required for drink + draw. >>
fri 7pm (monthly): kweendom: come out for the kweendom lgbtq+ comedy and storytelling show, featuring performances by david mills, jonnea herman, chewy may, matthew baum, and freya herself. hosted by bobby hankinson. pete’s candy store (williamsburg), free admission (donations are welcome and will benefit immigration equality). >>
fri 7pm: succession and the city: a parody: grab your cosmos and your corporate ambition for this interactive staged reading that answers the question: what happens when the ladies of sex and the city meet the dysfunctional roy family of succession? caveat (les), $15.67 with promo code ‘skint’ (reg. $24-25). >>
fri 7pm: bach by candlelight: house of time, an ensemble dedicated to performing both well-known and underperformed music from the 17th through 21st century on period instruments, presents its annual bach candlelight concert at the lounge at hudson view gardens (hudson heights). $25 general, $15 students. >>
fri 7:30pm (monthly): best night ever comedy show: audrey black and akshay sampath (cracked) host a night of stand-up at el santo taqueria (east williamsburg / bushwick). tonight’s lineup features myq kaplan, alex murdoch, yedoye travis, moss perricone, ismael loutfi, and subhah agarwal. $10 adv, $16 day of. >>
fri 8:30pm: bitches brew comedy show: this women-produced and-hosted comedy show conjures up big laughs in the back room of halyards (gowanus). tonight’s performers include aasif mandvi (evil), kenyon adamcik (siriusxm), sabeen sadiq (netflix is a joke), jonathan van halem, shaun anthony, jade bronte, and cameron phoenix. free admission (a tip jar will be passed around at the end of the show). >>
fri 9:30pm: three-day champion: three-day champion is a comedic storytelling podcast wrapped inside game show where comedian contestants are asked, ‘if you were a three-day champion on a game show, what three stories about yourself would you choose to tell?’ hosted by christine walters with guests asher perlman (the new yorker cartoonist), negin farsad (fake the nation), peter grosz (at home with amy sedaris), and dan taberski (host of missing richard simmons). caveat (les), $18.76 with promo code ‘3daychampion2026’ (reg. $24-25). >>
fri 11:30pm: come out and play: 90s + 20000s alt night: dance the night away to 90s and 00s grunge, pop-punk, alternative, and pop at the spare room at the gutter (williamsburg). free admission. >>
sponsored
Dorinda Medley (The Traitors and The Real Housewives of New York City) and Jackie Cox (RuPaul’s Drag Race) go head-to-head in a hilarious pop culture trivia showdown built around their self-proclaimed specialties, featuring surprise expert guests and plenty of laughs. This special taping of the hit podcast and live show Go Fact Yourself will be hosted by comedians J. Keith van Straaten (Ask Me Another) and Helen Hong (Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!).
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saturday
sat thru 1/31: happy 80th birthday, dolly!: nitehawk cinema and alamo drafthouse celebrate dolly parton’s 80th birthday with screenings of 9 to 5, the best little whorehouse in texas, rhinestone, and steel magnolias, with limited book giveaways and themed performances before select shows. various prices.
sat + sun (11am-6pm sat, 11am-5pm sun): cul de sac presents: sweat: a sauna + sound pop up: an east village park turns into an open-air bathhouse for a full-body reset. drop into 25-minute guided or unguided sauna + cold plunge sessions, and sink into soundscapes from two djs, with hot broth, snacks, tea, and hydration from local vendors to keep you going. la plaza cultural community garden (east village), $20. >>
sat 2pm: the open mic for short films: filmmakers share narrative short films on the big screen at this new community showcase for creators and cinephiles alike. stick around after the screenings to meet the filmmakers and fellow film lovers. telos haus (east williamsburg), $15. >>
sat 5pm (monthly): how was it? storytelling show: matt storrs hosts an evening of engaging, hilarious, and unforgettable stories at qed (astoria). tonight’s lineup: tracey starin, rima roy, kelli dunham, sophie brown, michelle carlo, and brian bouche. $5 admission. >>
sat 6pm: scream scene horror hangout: scream scene’s latest horror hangout presents a screening of john landis’ 1981 comedy horror classic an american werewolf in london at pine box rock shop (bushwick). stick around at the bar after the movie to chat with other horror fans. free admission. >>
sat 7pm: asian af variety show: the asian af asian american variety show presents a night of stand-up, sketch comedy, improv, and storytelling at ucb theatre (east village). hosted by improv team joy f*ck club. $15 adv, $20 day of. >>
sat 7:30pm: open to work: an unemployed comedy show: laugh at linkedin, layoffs, and late-stage-capitalism at amanda melhuish and ryan montesi’s open to work comedy show. tonight’s lineup includes marcela onyango, jamie linn watson, shiv shanks, charlie girard, nat towsen, alexis lambright, and jt anderson. friends and lovers (crown heights), $10. >>
sat 8pm: fun gutter: a party, show, and general check-in hosted by sasha von didkovsky, featuring standup from rachel coster, shaunak godkhindi, and greg nussbaum, plus an interview with illegal reptile expert tom marsan, and more. a bar crawl follows the show. the cobra club (bushwick), free admission ($10 suggested donation at the door). >>
sunday
sun 1-5pm: cloud city book swap: bring used books to donate, take new-to-you books home. leftover books will be donated to housing works. cloud city (williamsburg), free admission. >>
sun 6pm (monthly): you are not alone: an uplifting show about depression: improvisers and artists that battle depression and mental illness in their day-to-day lives create scenes inspired by personal experiences, showing how laughter can be the best medicine. hosted by aaron gold and michael serpe. magnet theater (chelsea), $10. >>
sun 7:30pm (monthly): good god comedy show: audience members can anonymously share their craziest, cringiest, most scandalous secrets for the hosts to read aloud at this stand-up comedy variety show. tonight’s lineup: aasif mandvi, caroline baniewicz, marcus monroe, akeem woods, and dvontre coleman. hosted by brittany carney and naomi karavani. union hall (park slope), $10 adv, $15 door. >>
sun 8pm (monthly): beanie babe comedy: the standups and the stuffed animals are full of beans at this comedy show, where a donation will get you a vintage beanie baby to take home. featuring rose vineshank (hard times), richard sarvate (siriusxm), will purpura (pbs), tess tregellas (betches), and sheba mason. hosted by rebecca kaplan. young ethel’s (south slope), free admission (donations optional). >>
sun 8pm (monthly) disasterpiece movie night: nukie: from the weird to the wondrous, disasterpiece unearths bad movies for a watch party complete with drinking games, trivia, pizza, and more. tonight: m. night shyamalan’s the happening (208). wonderville (bushwick), free admission. >>
sun 8:30pm: solving your problems with chloe troast: comedian and actress chloe troast (snl) and her comedy pals team up to tackle the audience’s problems through improv. proceeds will be donated to local mental health charities. ucb (east village), $15 adv, $20 day of. >>
monday
mon thru 1/23: children’s book drive: in anticipation of its children’s book fair on january 25, the marlene meyerson jcc manhattan (uws) is accepting donations of new and gently used books for children up to age 13. >>
mon 7pm: the book of red flags: dating signs they aren’t it: just in time for galentine’s day, comedian, actor and writer jenny gorelick and illustrator margalit cutler unpack dating disasters and warning signs from their new book the book of red flags: dating signs they aren’t it, in conversation with girls rewatch podcast co-host amelia ritthaler at strand bookstore’s rare book room (union square). $10 admission, $24.95 ticket option includes a signed copy of the book. >>
mon 7pm (monthly): and scene: anything could happen when actors and improvisors share the stage at ‘and scene,’ where the actors know their lines ahead of time and the improvisers make up their parts with no prior knowledge of the scenes. featuring andrew barth feldman (no hard feelings), pej vahdat (poker face), mckaley miller (dexter: resurrection, and more. $14.64 with promo code ‘andskint’ (reg. $24-25). >>
mon 7:30pm: dirty little secrets improv show: see your secrets turned into comedy gold at the dirty little secrets show, where your anonymously-submitted secrets serve as inspiration for improv performers. the wara theatre (east village), $14.64 with promo code ‘skintsecrets’ (reg. $23.18). >>
mon 8:30pm: the sober show: improv comedy based on your drunk stories, performed by sober improvisers. ucb (east village), $15. >>
ongoing
our roundup of 30+ ongoing events: nyc winter outing reservations (restaurant week, broadway week, nyc must-see week), janartsnyc, ice skating, art shows, and more. >>
stay safe and healthy
– the skint
